PTSD affected nearly one in five physicians during the pandemic

Ottawa Hospital researchers were highlighted in the Ottawa Citizen on Friday for a study recently published in JAMA medical journal. The study, which involved 28,000 participants from around the world, looked at the prevalence of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among physicians during the pandemic from 2019 to 2022.

Here are some key findings from the study:

• 18% of physicians reports symptoms consistent with PTSD (higher than before the pandemic and higher than the rate found in the general population)

• Women were twice as likely to be affected

• There were higher rates of PTSD among trainees and older physicians

Dr. Manish m Sood , who is a physician and senior scientist at our hospital, was the senior researcher on this study and says these results can’t be ignored. He hopes the research will be used to help inform wellness programs for physicians, particularly with regard to early screening, detection and intervention.

Compared to many other countries, Canada’s pandemic response fared well – we experienced under 40% of the proportion of COVID-19 related deaths as in the US (source: Johns Hopkins – click to: deaths/100,000). But being prepared for the next pandemic means learning all we can from the last one. From this study, it is clear that we will need to look at ways to better address the health of the very physicians that are busy addressing the health of our community at large.

Long Term Care at Riverside

On July 24th, The Ottawa Citizen published an op-ed written by James Schlegel, President and CEO, Schlegel Villages, defending their partnership with The Ottawa Hospital in building new long term care (LTC) facilities at the Riverside Campus. The article responds to a July 2nd op-ed that objected to private participation in the project on the grounds that the facility will occupy what was formerly public land. Mr. Schlegel states that “the diversity of the LTC sector, which includes non-profit, municipal and private organizations, is one of its strengths. We need all providers working with partners across the health system to meet the needs of our growing seniors population”. While both articles speak to the pressing need for more LTC capacity and for quality of care for this vulnerable segment, neither references the downstream benefits it will bring through freeing-up acute care beds and alleviating bottlenecks in emergency. On that, I refer readers back to the July 11th edition of this newsletter which covered Cameron Love , TOH President and CEO, speaking in a panel at the 2024 Manion Lecture, A Discussion on the Health Care Polycrisis.?

Walters Group to provide structural steel and metal decks for new campus parking garage.

Daily Commercial News featured a short piece about the construction of the parking garage structure. Walters Group will be providing structural steel and metal decks to the parking garage, including the portions that run across the LRT tracks. They are a family-run business that has been specializing in commercial and industrial projects in Canada and the U.S. since the 1950s and is currently involved in the LRT expansion.